New Dates Announced for VIOLINS OF HOPE At The Soraya

The Los Angeles organizers of Violins of Hope are rescheduling concerts and other events for January and February 2021, with an Opening Night concert by the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony on Thursday, January 14, 2021 at The Soraya (CSUN).

In the meanwhile, as communities continue the ongoing quarantine, The Soraya will present a special one-time-only Facebook Live broadcast featuring artist-in-residence Niv Ashkenazi performing works from his newly released album, Niv Ashkenazi: Violins of Hope on Friday, April 17 at 4:00pm. Details are available at https://www.thesoraya.org/calendar/details/ashkenazi. Ashkenazi is the only individual musician in North America entrusted with one of the collection's rescued and restored violins.

"Suspending Violins of Hope activities was heartbreaking for everyone who had come together around this extraordinary project - musicians, educators, philanthropists, elected officials, arts organizations, churches and synagogues, and the public at large," said Thor Steingraber, Executive Director of The Soraya. "Our commitment to the principles of Violins of Hope compelled us to dedicate more than two years to prepare for this project and we look forward presenting Violins of Hope in early 2021. As we look to the future, we look forward to presenting a livestreamed concert from our stage that features our artist-in-residence Niv Ashkenazi who just completed a 40-school tour and has released a Violins of Hope album."

Violins of Hope is an internationally renowned project that is a collection of over 60 stringed instruments rescued from the Holocaust and restored by second-generation violinmaker, Amnon Weinstein, and his son, Avshalom in their shop in Tel Aviv. Symphonic orchestras, a major heritage museum and one of Los Angeles' leading performing arts centers had joined together to bring the collection to Los Angeles from March 22 to April 26, 2020 for a month-long series of concerts, exhibits, and student educational programming. These activities were suspended on March 12 in response to the growing worldwide health crisis.

"The current circumstances with COVID-19 only magnify the importance of Violins of Hope," continued Steingraber. "Headlines in the press and pronouncements from global leaders suggest that we have not faced a crisis this severe since World War II. In that chapter of history, as well as the current one, those violins have stood as witness to our collective strength and resiliency in the face of difficult circumstances, and when we emerge from COVID-19, those instruments will again be present to celebrate what is best in humankind."

With the generous assistance of Weinstein, The Soraya team in collaboration will all the partners, was able to identify January and February 2021 as a time that the violins could be in Los Angeles. Additional rescheduling is ongoing and will be announced at a later date.

About Niv Ashkenazi: Violins of Hope
The Soraya's artist-in-residence, violinist Niv Ashkenazi, the only individual musician in North America entrusted with one of the collection's rescued violins, had just completed a 40-school tour of Los Angeles where he introduced students to his violin and its history. His new album, Niv Ashkenazi: The Violins of Hope, was recorded at The Soraya earlier this year.

The Soraya will present a Facebook Live broadcast of a 30-minute concert by Niv Ashkenazi on Friday, April 17 at 4:00pm, which can be streamed at the following link: https://bit.ly/NivatTheSoraya. Prior to the concert, the violinist will be interviewed by Mr. Steingraber who conducts the conversation adhering to current State, County and City safe-distancing guidelines. Additional details on this event can be found at https://www.thesoraya.org/calendar/details/ashkenazi.

Violins of Hope Background
Violins of Hope is an artistic and educational project composed of instruments that were owned by Jewish musicians before and during the Holocaust. Violins in the collection were played in the concentration camps and ghettos, providing a source of comfort for some and a means of survival for others. Above all, the instruments represented strength and optimism for the future during mankind's darkest hour. Wherever there was music, there was hope.

The project was founded by Amnon Weinstein and his son Avshalom Weinstein, Israeli luthiers who collect the instruments, refurbish them to concert quality, and bring them to communities all over the world. The Violins of Hope have traveled to Jerusalem, Sion, Madrid, Maastricht, Monaco, Rome, Berlin, London, Bucharest, Dachau, Dresden, and Auschwitz. In the United States, the project has been presented in Charlotte, Cleveland, Houston, Jacksonville, Sarasota, Washington, D.C., Cincinnati, Nashville, Birmingham, Knoxville, Phoenix, Louisville, Fort Wayne, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. A typical residency includes an exhibition, performances, and educational programs.

Although the instruments make beautiful museum pieces, at the heart of the Violins of Hope project is the Weinsteins' commitment to ensuring that the instruments are played again. While some of the musicians who originally owned the Violins of Hope may have been silenced by the Holocaust, their voices and spirits live on through performances on their instruments. The Violins of Hope have been played by virtuosos such as Shlomo Mintz and Daniel Hope, and revered ensembles such as the Berlin Philharmonic and the Cleveland Orchestra.

Violins of Hope has been featured in the documentary, Violins of Hope: Strings of the Holocaust, and a book Violins of Hope: Violins of the Holocaust-Instruments of Hope and Liberation in Mankind's Darkest Hour.

For more information, please visit The Soraya.

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